Initiation
by Azul Twilight
Summary: Roxas struggles to find his place in Organization XIII and to earn the respect of the other members, making friends, enemies, and learning his own power along the way.


**_Initiation_**

"I don't understand it, Superior," Saїx was saying, one hand resting on the windowsill as he gazed at Kingdom Hearts hanging in the darkness in all its radiance. "Why a mere _child_? I realize that his heart was obviously strong since his Nobody maintained human form, but of what value can he be to us? Surely you do not intend for us to send the whelp into battle?"

The Luna Diviner turned to face his leader just in time to see his face darken. "Certainly, Number Seven, you are not questioning my decision..."

"Of course not, Superior! I'm simply curious as to what you plan to achieve by bringing a youth into our ranks."

Xemnas's mouth slowly curved into a small smirk. "Don't you see? Did you not for one moment consider the name I gave him?"

Saїx's blue eyebrows drew inward. "Roxas..." Xemnas could almost see the letters rearranging themselves into various combinations in the Nobody's head. Suddenly, his eyes widened as if at a revelation. "Sora... is his Somebody?" Soon, his face, too, split into a toothy grin. "Yes Superior- now I understand completely."

--------------------------------

Roxas tugged disdainfully at the collar of the cloak with which he had just been fitted. "And I've got to wear this when?" he asked, arching an eyebrow at the figure looming above him.

"Well, you don't have to sleep in it," Saїx replied dryly. "Now quickly- here are your boots. The meeting is already underway."

The blond held them by the laces at arm's length, looking upon them with nearly as much contempt as he had the cloak. "But... they're huge!"

"We never expected to have a _child_ in the Organization," Saїx stated simply.

Roxas met his gaze with one of animosity, but wisely held his tongue- this man's wrath was the last thing he wanted right then. He reluctantly shoved his feet inside the boots, his frown deepening as he wiggled his toes, realizing the vast amount of space that was left unoccupied. The cloak fit only a bit better- the sleeves hung several inches below his wrists and, when he stood, the hem lingered only slightly above the floor.

Saїx nodded once. "That'll do. Come." Without giving him the opportunity to comply, Number Seven grabbed the boy's now leather-clad arm and pulled him into an oval of swirling blackness.

--------------------------------

Emerging on the other side, Roxas found himself in yet another staggeringly white room. This one, however, was circular, and he stood alone on the floor surrounded by twelve exceedingly tall chairs, all of different heights, and all occupied.

"...Number Thirteen," a low voice the blond remembered belonging to the mysterious man who had brought him here announced, as if continuing a sentence. "The Key of Destiny: Roxas."

The introduction was met by several chuckles, a couple of laughs, and a simple snort. They were cut short, however, by an austere glower from the tallest chair. Silence restored, he cleared his throat, now speaking directly to the boy. "The female behind you is Number Twelve, Larxene, The Savage Nymph."

Glancing over his shoulder, Roxas found himself looking into an evil grin held by a blond woman with an odd hairstyle which vaguely reminded him of antennae.

"Beside her is Number Eleven, Marluxia, The Graceful Assassin." A man with strange pink hair smiled down at him from his seat.

"Next is Number Ten, Luxord, The Gambler of Fate." One hand of the blond man rubbed his goatee; the other clenched a deck of cards.

"Then Number Nine, Demyx, The Melodious Nocturne." A young man with a mullet-style haircut smiled and gave a little wave.

"Number Eight, Axel, The Flurry of Dancing Flames." The redhead rolled his eyes, arching an eyebrow in the direction of the tallest chair. "I'm totally not babysitting..." he could scarcely be heard grumbling.

Another sharp glare from the apparent leader, then he continued. "You've already met Saїx, Number Seven, The Luna Diviner." Roxas nodded, gaze shifting to the man with long, blue hair and an odd "X" shape across his face.

"Beside him is Number Six, Zexion, The Cloaked Schemer." The person in question was a younger man, arms folded across his chest and gray-purple hair hanging low over one side of his face. His one visible eye gazed uninterested at the younger Nobody.

Equally quiet was the one introduced next. "Lexaeus, Number Five, The Silent Hero." The hulking figure nodded once in acknowledgement.

"Number Four, Vexen, The Chilly Academic." The blond's cold gaze was enough to send a shiver down Roxas's spine.

"Number Three, Xaldin, The Whirlwind Lancer." A man with long, dark braids smirked in reply.

"And Number Two, Xigbar, The Freeshooter." Roxas looked up to see a man with long, black hair streaked gray and pulled back in a ponytail grinning down at him. He wore an eyepatch over one eye and had a jagged scar across one cheek. "Pleasure to meet'ya, Squirt!" he said flippantly to the youngster.

"Silence," growled the gray-haired man to the underling. Returning his attention to the new recruit, he continued. "I am Number One, Xemnas, The Superior." As he spoke, he waved his hand, causing an additional chair, lower than the rest, to appear between two others.

"Welcome to Organization XIII."

--------------------------------

"I don't believe this," a figure with fiery locks moaned, scuffing his boot on the smooth floor. "One little remark and I get stuck _babysitting_."

"I'm fifteen," the blond replied, gloved hands clenching into fists at his sides. The whole 'little kid' thing was really starting to grind his nerves.

"And while I'm watching the _twerp_, _Demyx_ is out on one of the fun set-buildings-on-fire-and-destroy-the-whole-town missions!" Axel continued as they walked along, apparently ranting to no one but himself as he was completely ignoring his charge that trotted along at his heels, struggling to keep up with the older, taller man's wide strides. "_Demyx_! Of all people! He doesn't even _like_ missions like that! Talk about sending the wrong guy!"

Ugh, he was _so_ annoying! Roxas was sure he was enjoying what was supposed to be a tour of the castle just as little as Axel. "Just show me my room, the bathroom, and the kitchen and I'll be fine," the teen grumbled, glaring at the red spikes of hair in front of him.

"And I can't even teleport! Little _child_ has to learn his way around, he says!"

"I'm sure I could figure it out myself."

"And does Xigbar get punished? Nooo, just because _he's_ number two, _he_ can say whatever he _wants_ in meetings!"

"Do you ever shut up?"

"And since _Xemnas_ just _had_ to have a frickin' HUGE castle, this is going to take _forever_!"

"This coat is itchy."

"Why couldn't _Larxene_ do this? I mean, _she's_ the one with the maternal instincts, right?"

Roxas sighed. This was useless. Axel was totally ignoring him.

In fact... he hardly knew he was there...

Meaning he probably wouldn't realize if he suddenly stopped following him.

While Axel continued to seethe, Roxas wordlessly ducked down a corridor that branched off the main hallway, hastening his pace to a jog- if the older Nobody noticed his absence, he wanted to be far enough away that he would not be found with ease.

As the teen rounded another corner, he nearly collided with a man who had been walking in the opposite direction. "Holy chocobo..." was all Roxas could say as he planted his feet, sliding to a halt in front of the one he remembered having been called Zexion. His only visible eyebrow rose in the boy's direction.

"Number Thirteen, are you not supposed to be with Number Eight?"

A guise of panic crossed the face of the blond as he racked his brain for an excuse. "We, er... got separated." Yeah, good catch, Roxas. His face brightened slightly, blue eyes wide with innocence. "Have you seen him?" Hey, they wanted to call him a kid, he might as well use that to his advantage, right?

Zexion's eye narrowed somewhat in suspicion, but his face remained otherwise expressionless. "I have not. However, I had best accompany you until you do find him, lest you become lost." Roxas opened his mouth to object, but before he could, Zexion had taken hold of his arm and was leading him down the hallway in the direction from which the blond had come. He was clearly not falling for Roxas's act, convincing as he might have made it.

This journey was much, much quieter than the one previous- Zexion seemed to be the complete opposite of Axel in almost every way. At some point, the older Nobody released Roxas's arm, but he felt compelled to follow him anyway. Maybe, just maybe they wouldn't find Axel. Then Zexion could show him around instead.

But no sooner had they entered the main hall than the Flurry of Dancing Flames himself came jogging up, expression that of obvious relief when his emerald eyes fell upon the duo.

"Raxocks! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

The boy in question glared. "It's Roxas," he muttered.

"You really should take better care not to lose your charge, Number Eight. Any further instances and I will certainly mention to the Superior that you are neglecting your responsibilities," Zexion said flatly, shoving the blond toward his guide. Without another word, he turned on his heel and headed down the hall.

Axel watched his retreating back until he was sure he was out of earshot. At that point, he whirled around, grabbing Roxas by the collar of his coat. "Listen, twerp, don't you _ever_ do that again. If I get turned into a Dusk on account of _you_..."

"Is there some trouble here?" a soft voice rang out. Axel slowly lifted his gaze, discovering Marluxia standing there, some exotic potted plant cradled carefully in his hands. He immediately released the boy, who barely caught himself from falling backwards. "Ah! Marly! Nope, no trouble at all. Just giving the kid a bit of advice, right Ruxers?" he asked, ruffling the blond's hair.

"It's _Roxas_," Roxas growled, swatting the hand away from his head.

Marluxia chuckled. "Glad you two have hit it off so well! How splendid- only a few hours and already like brothers!" He smiled broadly, and then looked down at the plant he was holding. "Now, we must be on our way! Off to the greenhouse with you, my pretty!" With that, he strolled away with a gait that could almost be considered a skip.

Roxas stared blankly after the pink-haired man. He had been told the Organization was an elite group of Nobodies- he assumed they were the ruthless sort that fought battles and killed things and whatnot. How exactly did _that one_ fit in?

"Yeah, Marly's a bit on the... odd side..." Axel began, as if reading his mind, and rubbed the back of his head with a gloved hand. Then he shook his head. "Anyway, let's go. We've got a lot of ground to cover."

--------------------------------

"And last, but certainly not the least, your room," the tall Nobody breathed, pushing the white door emblazoned with the insignia "XIII" open.

A bed, a dresser, a closet, a nightstand. So simple; Roxas took it in with one sweep of his brilliant blue eyes.

"If you need anything, my room's across the hall." The blond felt himself pushed inside and, just before the door clicked shut behind him, the voice continued: "Do me a favor: Don't need anything. Got it memorized?"

For a moment, Roxas entertained the idea of going after the man and giving him a good sock in the nose, but decided against it- he really didn't want to deal with the pyro any more than he had to.

Curiosity getting the best of him, the boy took a peek in the closet: it contained only a few more copies of the stupid black cloak he already wore. The dresser had a few other garments, including more comfortable attire to sleep in.

Gaze shifting to the large window that occupied one of the far walls of the large room, Roxas found he had a spectacular view of The World That Never Was's weird heart-shaped moon. It seemed rather out of place in such a dreary, dark location as this.

Suddenly realizing he was quite tired, the teen flopped down on the bed, gazing up at the ceiling. What a day this had been- he had awakened to find himself outside the gates of a large mansion, then that Xemnas guy had appeared and said a few things, and, after dubbing him Roxas, whisked him off to this Organization XIII. He didn't really know who he was, where he had come from, or anything like that- only that he was what was called a Nobody and had no heart, which was apparently a bad thing. Xemnas had said working with the Organization would one day get him a heart and make him complete. That was good enough for the teen- not like he had anything better to do anyway, what with not remembering anything and all. But now he was stuck in a place that reminded him more of an insane asylum than a serious base for the choicest Nobodies to plan and execute life-and-death missions, and he was pretty sure he was better off wherever he had come from than _here_.

But before he could elaborate upon that thought, he had drifted off into slumber.

--------------------------------

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

Roxas slapped at his nightstand, searching for the snooze button. Surely it was too early to be waking up...

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

Wait... That noise wasn't an alarm clock...

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

"Raxorks! Wake up, kid!"

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

Definitely not an alarm clock... someone knocking on the door...

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

"Unnh... five more minutes!"

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

"Up and at'm! Come on, hurry up!"

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

The voice was getting impatient. Roxas groaned, pulling the pillow over his head.

The banging suddenly ceased, and for a moment the teen thought whoever it was had given up. That is, until he found himself face-down on the floor.

Axel replaced the mattress on the frame, and then snatched the covers from around the boy before he could pull them over his head. "Dude, you slept in your uniform? You realize you've got PJ's in your dresser, right?"

Only then did Roxas realize he had, indeed, fallen asleep in his Organization cloak. His oversized boots were somewhere or other- they had apparently come off while he'd tossed in his sleep.

Reluctantly moving to his feet, Roxas rubbed his head which was now throbbing from its impact with the floor. "What do you _want_, Axel?"

"Hey, don't kill me, okay? Xemnas sent me- I'm supposed to show you the ropes." His face twisted, expressing his distaste for the idea.

Roxas frowned. "The ropes?"

"Yeah, you know- fighting and stuff. Apparently he really _does_ intend for you to go off on missions." He shrugged. "Go figure."

"Anyway, I really don't feel like walking all the way to the other end of the castle, so I'm going to go ahead and teach you the teleportation thing. The easiest is portals- soon you won't even need that, unless you're going to another world. Just focus on the place you want to go, stick out your hand like this..."

--------------------------------

After several failed attempts, Roxas finally succeeded in creating a portal to take them to the training room. It was more or less a large, empty space with a balcony on one side for observation. Saїx suddenly teleported to stand in front of the duo, hands clasped behind him. "Thank you, Number Eight. I will be overseeing Number Thirteen's training from here."

Axel looked confused for a moment, then relieved. "Oh, sweet- thanks." He then moved as if to exit the room, but was halted by a gloved hand on his shoulder. "Not so fast, Flurry. You are by no means excused." Saїx grinned. "You will still be assisting- your first assignment is a mock battle. Let the boy practice with his weapon. Easy at first, Axel, then progressively more difficult."

Suddenly, the man disappeared, reemerging from the darkness atop the balcony. "Positions!"

"But... I don't have a weapon!" Roxas protested as Axel sighed, moving to the other end of the room.

"Of course you do, Thirteen," Saїx replied from his place above them. "It will come to you when you are in need of it. Begin!"

The pyro brandished a pair of chakrams in a burst of flames, raising one over his shoulder as he ran toward the boy.

"Oh Moogle... I'm gonna die," Roxas whimpered, raising his hands to shield his head. Right at that moment, they both became quite heavy and he could feel his fingers wrapped around steel hilts. His blue eyes opened and he saw he was holding a pair of odd looking weapons, vaguely resembling keys. Man, why couldn't he get something _cool_, like a broadsword or something?

Then he remembered Axel.

He raised his weapons to block the chakram that had been aiming for his head just in time, resulting in a loud clang from the colliding metals.

"_Two_?!" Axel cried as he jumped backwards. His emerald eyes turned to Saїx, who looked equally stunned. Roxas, too, looked up at him, raising an eyebrow in question.

The blue-haired man inhaled deeply, regaining his composure. "Your weapons are called _keyblades_. In your left hand, you hold Oblivion, in your right Oathkeeper. They are both very powerful for both physical and magic attacks. I expect you to practice and master both, but for now, focus on the former. You may resume."

Roxas turned back to his opponent just in time to block another blow, this one directed at his arm. He swung Oathkeeper, the second blade, at his exposed side and was pleased when it connected. He had not, however, expected it to be enough to throw the Nobody to the ground, and apparently neither had his victim. "Argh! Little punk..." Axel groaned, rolling to his feet.

"Jeez, sorry... I didn't mean to-" But Roxas was cut off when Axel threw a chakram in his direction. No time for apologies.

_Block, block, counter, slice!_

Roxas adapted very quickly to using the keyblades and found the motions surprisingly instinctive, as if he had been doing this his entire life. It wasn't long before Saїx nodded, satisfied.

"That's enough for today," the Luna Diviner began once Axel had been knocked away (Roxas was now careful not to actually hurt him) for the... well, they had lost count how many times now. "Rest well, for tomorrow the real work begins."

--------------------------------

Seeing as he had the rest of the day free, Roxas decided to explore the castle. Axel had given him a very superficial tour and many areas had been completely bypassed; besides, he needed to further familiarize himself with the maze of halls.

Hands shoved in the pockets of his cloak, the boy meandered down a corridor, relishing the silence and solitude, lost in thought. He didn't realize until he had nearly reached its source that at some point he had begun to follow a melodic sound. Halting, the teen tilted his head, listening- it sounded as if it were coming from around the next corner. Try as he might, he could not resist the urge to see what sort of instrument could create such a beautiful, gentle tune as that.

Rounding the bend, sure enough there sat a man perched on a stool in the middle of the room, idly plucking at the strings on an odd guitar-like object. What surprised Roxas more was the fact that there was rain falling from the ceiling, creating puddles at the artist's feet.

Suddenly, the Nobody seemed to realize there was someone in the doorway and immediately stopped playing, lifting his gaze to see who was there. As soon as the music ceased, so did the rain.

"Demyx?" The teen suddenly recognized him by the mohawk he sported.

"Hey, new kid! Roxas, was it?" The boy in question nodded. "Sorry, I didn't see you come in," he continued, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"It's okay." Roxas shrugged. "So... is that some kind of guitar or what?" he asked, advancing to get a closer look at the instrument.

"This? Oh, no! This is my sitar," the young man said proudly, face beaming. "Hey, wanna see something cool?" Without waiting for an answer, Demyx strummed the sitar once, crying "Dance, water, dance!" It was apparently not an empty command, for at that moment several blobs of water appeared that bore a striking resemblance to the Melodious Nocturne himself. Demyx grinned at a dumbfounded Roxas. "They're my water clones. Pretty awesome, huh?"

"Uh..."

"Watch this!" Demyx started strumming again on the sitar, causing the water clones to break out into a wild dance, skipping around the duo in seemingly random paths to the music.

Roxas had to admit, it _was_ pretty cool, but he couldn't help but wonder if Demyx had some kind of _real_ weapon.

Finally the song ended, causing the water clones to burst like bubbles. Demyx grinned, leaning back slightly. "So I hear your weapons are keyblades. Must be totally awesome!"

Roxas shrugged. "Yeah, they're alright. Pretty easy to use and all."

"Pretty easy? I've always heard it's hard as heck to fight with _two_. You must be really good!"

The boy's eyebrows drew inward. Was that why Axel and Saїx had been so surprised he had two keyblades? "I got the hang of it pretty quick."

"Hey Dem!" a voice interrupted from the hallway. "Have you seen my other gu- hey, it's the new kid!" The one Roxas recognized as Xigbar came in and ruffled his hair. "How's it going, Squirt?"

The boy swatted the hand away- what was up with people messing with his hair?! "My name's _Roxas_," he muttered.

Xigbar laughed. "Right! Anyway, I hope everyone's treatin' ya nice! Don't mind Axel though- dude never has liked kids!"

Demyx grinned. "I was just showing him my water clones!"

Xigbar chuckled. "Yeah, Demdem likes his water clones..." Then, he whispered in Roxas's ear: "Only way the dude knows how to fight!"

"I heard that!" the younger man complained, crossing his arms.

"Anyway, I've got to go find my other gun- Luxord better hope he didn't try to pawn it off again," Xigbar grumbed, exiting the room.

--------------------------------

_**BANG BANG BANG!**_

Again with the banging?! Roxas pulled the covers over his head, willing the noise to stop.

Which it did.

Suddenly, the boy blindly kicked his foot over the edge of the bed, where it connected with Axel's gut.

"Ugh... little punk!" Axel drew back his fist, but then reconsidered. "I don't have time for this. Hurry up and get dressed!" He tossed a coat on the bed and was gone.

Roxas reluctantly rolled out from between the sheets, wishing he'd been given just one more hour to sleep. Clearly no one around here was keen on the idea of sleeping in.

Dressed and ready, Roxas found Axel leaning against the wall just outside his door. "About time, Ruxerz. Guess what? You get to go on your first mission today and lucky, lucky me gets to partner up with you. Fun, eh?" The sarcasm was practically dripping from his voice.

Roxas shook his head. "Cut the crap, Axel. Let's just get this over with."

"Temper, temper." Axel smirked. "Anyway, we're going to this place called Twilight Town. Supposed to be a big, bad heartless there just begging to be pwned." As he spoke, he created a portal against the wall. "Piece of cake," the redhead murmured, pulling his hood over his head and stepping inside. Roxas took a deep breath- heartless... those were beings without a body or soul, merely hearts ridden with darkness. His first real battle. The Key of Destiny followed the pyro into the unknown.

--------------------------------

The world looked oddly familiar. "Wha'd you say this place was called?" Roxas inquired.

"Twilight Town," Axel replied distantly- he wasn't really listening. He was looking around, searching for anything abnormal that might hint at the location of their quarry. He turned his head in Roxas's direction and seemed to notice something. Reaching out, he pulled the hood from behind the boy's neck to rest low over his head. "_Always_ keep your face hidden on missions."

"But my hai-" "Let's try up there," Axel interrupted, striding up a steep incline. A sign nearby pointing in that direction said something or other about a train station. Roxas shrugged to himself and jogged after him.

The duo soon found themselves standing in an open area that overlooked the rest of Twilight Town, providing a spectacular view of the eternally setting sun. Behind them were a tall clock tower and the train station.

But in front of the Nobodies was exactly what they were looking for: a gigantic black shape which could only be a heartless. Axel thought it looked exactly like a shadow heartless, only much, much bigger.

"Oh my chocobo..." Roxas whispered, subconsciously summoning his keyblades to his hands. Axel, too, pulled out his chakrams. Holding his gaze on their foe, he spoke calmly to his ally. "I'll attack the feet- you go for the head." Not bothering to wait for confirmation that the boy understood the plan- simple as it was- he sprinted forward, slashing repeatedly at the trunk-like legs of the monster.

The blond followed suit, first attacking the massive left arm and then using it to launch himself higher, slicing at the round black blob that was its cranium. Of course, the heartless did not intend to go down without a fight. It straightened slightly from its hunched over position, swiping at the little pest on its shoulder. Roxas nearly avoided it, but the beast's long fingers managed to curl around his body. Trying not to panic, the Nobody sliced his keyblades at whatever he could reach, soon connecting a blow with the beast's wrist. It seemed to be just enough to cause it to let go, dropping the boy to the ground.

Just as he was about to leap up for the head once more, Roxas realized that Axel had apparently been ambushed by a flock of neoshadows. As he watched, one appeared behind the pyro, and the next moment he was on the ground. "Axel!" Roxas cried, dashing to his partner's aid. He took out the heartless one after the other, franticly whipping his keyblades left and right until he had reached the man's side where the last of the neoshadows was just about to issue the final blow. "NO!" The blond knocked it aside just in time, quickly pulling the Flurry of Dancing Flames to his feet.

"You... saved me?" Axel asked, dazed and holding a hand on his throbbing head.

"Don't sweat it- just MOVE!" the keyblade bearer replied, stabbing at the foot of the giant heartless that had been preparing to stomp them flat.

"Right," Axel murmured, shaking his head and moving back to battle stance.

The fight was difficult- far more so than Number Eight had thought. I mean, it was the kid's first mission! Those were _never_ hard.

But in time, thanks to their combined efforts, they were victorious. As the creature faded into darkness, a large purple heart floated into the air.

--------------------------------

"What're we doing up here? Shouldn't we go back to The World That Never Was?" Roxas asked, looking down from where they stood atop the clock tower.

"Just sit down, okay?" Axel murmured, plopping down on the edge. The blond sighed and followed suit.

"Here," the pyro said, passing the boy an odd blue popsicle.

"What's this?" he asked suspiciously, holding it at arm's length.

"It's sea salt ice cream. Just try it- it's good."

Roxas shot him a wary gaze, and only after he saw the man take several licks of his own treat did he reluctantly taste it.

"Eww, it's... salty!" the teen said, making a face. But then, an odd aftertaste formed in his mouth. "But... sweet?" He suddenly found himself heartily consuming the ice cream- it really _was_ good.

"Told you so," Axel said with a smirk. "Anyway, about earlier..." he said, clearing his throat. "Thanks for saving me and all and... I'm sorry for how I've been treating you." His fingers clutched the wooden stick tighter as he looked down at his feet. "I was wondering if we could, you know... start over."

Roxas held a hand against his forehead, suffering from a severe case of brainfreeze. "Ugh," he murmured, tossing the now-bare stick down to the ground.

Axel chuckled despite himself, waiting for the boy to recover.

At last, Roxas shook his head to clear it, shifting his gaze to the man with a look of skepticism. "You mean you want to be... friends?"

"Yeah," the redhead replied, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "I guess so... Roxas."

For the first time since he could remember, the teen smiled. "Sure."

Such a simple word, yet one that would mark the beginning of a friendship of the sort that was unheard of among Nobodies. For most, mere alliances were formed between those who worked well together- but this was stronger, beyond anything even the friends themselves had expected.

Roxas became Axel's heart.


End file.
